Rafael Carvalho made Bas Rutten proud on Friday night. The underdog Brazilian melted former champion Brandon Halsey with a beautiful second-round liver kick to complete a stunning comeback and seize the vacant Bellator middleweight title in the main event of Bellator 144.
It was a spectacular turnaround for Carvalho (12-1), who was otherwise being dominated in the contest by the much larger Halsey (9-1). The American vacated his title in May after missing weight by eight pounds, but looked strong in the bout's opening minutes, shooting for a quick double leg, then advancing into mount and locking up a nasty arm triangle that almost put Carvalho out.